


New Things

by eeveepacini



Category: Degrassi
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:29:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27441967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eeveepacini/pseuds/eeveepacini
Summary: Imogen and Drew bond after Adam's death over copious amounts of food. Drew comes out as bisexual.Dedicated to Adrian <3
Relationships: Becky Baker/Imogen Moreno, Imogen Moreno/Drew Torres
Comments: 6
Kudos: 3





	New Things

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Adrianpink](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adrianpink/gifts).



> Imagine this happening instead of Clew...

Imogen had a lot of trouble comprehending that it had only been a few months since Adam’s untimely and unexpected death. In some ways it felt like the tragic event had occurred just yesterday. Other ways it felt like Imogen knew Adam in another lifetime.  _ So much _ had happened and changed since the summer… 

She was still partially consumed by the feeling that she should shoulder a portion of the blame for Adam’s death. Making out with Adam earlier that day and the overall flirting that had taken place between the two definitely lit a fire under Adam to communicate and apologize to Becky as soon as possible, which directly led to the crash. Everyone - even Becky and Drew, who Imogen had bonded with because of their common trauma, kept trying to reassure her that it wasn’t her fault. Imogen had some trouble believing that. 

“Have you noticed any  _ weird behavior _ from Drew lately?” Becky asked, popping the metaphorical thought bubble above Imogen’s head and bringing her back to reality. It seemed like Imogen had been tuned out of class for at least a few minutes.

“Drew is always weird.” Imogen examined her nails. She knew what Becky meant -- she just  _ really  _ didn’t want to talk about it, especially with Becky. Guilt twisted Imogen’s stomach and robbed her of her appetite. “Aren’t we all still acting a little weird? Adam being gone…” Saying his name still hurt. “None of us are healing overnight”

Becky shook her head. “It doesn’t even seem to be about Adam… at least not  _ only  _ about Adam... I think something may be going on with him and Bianca.” 

“I can ask him at lunch if you want,” Imogen offered. Imogen and Drew had been sitting together at lunch practically every day of the entire semester. Sometimes Clare, Dallas or Becky dropped by for one reason or another, but typically it was just Imogen and Drew one on one. “It’s spaghetti day. Drew  _ loves _ meatballs.” 

Becky offered Imogen a smile but she still seemed a bit uneasy. “Sounds good.” She said, turning her attention back to the class assignment they were supposed to be working on. 

Imogen decided to not even bother trying to catch up. She knew that this was the reason she flunked her senior year the first time. She just  _ couldn’t focus _ when a bunch of things were going on at once. Imogen’s brain was already bouncing around in a million directions thinking about lunch with Drew. Their conversations flowed so naturally, especially lately. Both Imogen and Drew had the same demeanor -- not too tightly wound, sort of flighty when it came to serious topics or school… It was easy for the two to get along. If anything good had come out of Adam’s passing away, the connection Imogen and Drew had forged was definitely it. 

“Is it okay if I have lunch with Jenna and Alli?” Becky asked Imogen. 

Imogen raised an eyebrow. “You don’t want to eat with me and Drew? You were the one worried about him in the first place. Now you don’t want anything to do with it?”

Becky replied without much confidence in her tone. “I always say the wrong thing when it comes to… y’know… hard stuff.” Becky always meant well but her sheltered upbringing definitely left her with some major social handicaps. “I tried to say some comforting things at the funeral, and you remember what happened…” 

“Drew doesn’t hold that against you. Nobody does.” Imogen said, struggling to collect the cluttered items that were sprawled across her desk. She shoved them into her backpack haphazardly, clearly not concerned with keeping her bag tidy. “We were all emotional wrecks for a while.  _ Especially _ Drew,” Imogen recalled the day of the funeral, which was one of the most painful days of her life. “You made it better, Becks. The bonfire you threw, releasing those beautiful lanterns into the sky… you honored Adam’s death in the most beautiful way. Drew appreciates you for sure.” 

Tears filled Becky’s blue eyes. “I guess… It’s just hard for me to see it that way sometimes. I just feel so responsible for everything. I’ve been having nightmares again…” 

Imogen recalled the nightmares that Becky had described right after Adam’s death and funeral. The once sunshiney girl was overtaken with fear and pain for _weeks_. She just couldn’t forgive herself. In all honesty, Imogen sort of felt the same. She was just slightly better at hiding it. The guilt of not telling Becky that she had been slightly intimate with her _somewhat_ _ex_ boyfriend only hours before he drove a van into a tree… It wasn’t exactly an easy thing to forget. Telling Becky wouldn’t help things, though, so Imogen reluctantly decided to keep it a secret instead. 

“I’m sorry Becks.” Imogen pulled Becky into a hug as they exited the classroom and entered the hallway. “Would sleeping over tonight help?” She offered. A day or two away from her family always seemed to make Becky a bit less tense. Her parents did practically nothing to help comfort their daughter when it came to Adam. They’d never liked or trusted Adam anyway. As messed up as it seemed, Becky seemed to think that her parents saw Adam’s death as some sort of  _ blessing in disguise  _ \-- something to keep their precious daughter away from what they had ignorantly deemed as  _ ‘sinful’ _ . The most sympathy and advice that Becky had received was her father encouraging her to look for answers in the bible.  _ Not exactly _ the help and support that a traumatized teen needed.

“That would definitely help…” Becky admitted. “Things at my house are like  _ hell _ right now -- and you know me, I don’t take the concept of hell lightly...” These painful circumstances had changed everyone, including Becky. Though Becky never stopped being sweet, there was definitely a layer of jadedness that now existed like a cloud of fog on Becky’s surface. 

“My top bunk is all yours.” Imogen offered a half-smile to her friend. “I’ll let my mom know you’re coming over. She loves you anyway. She’ll probably bring home Chinese!” 

…

“Drew!” Imogen shouted from the far side of the cafeteria. He looked to be deep into what looked like an impromptu student council meeting. Drew definitely looked like he needed rescuing. He was doing that thing where he rubbed his temples, trying to release the tension headache Clare Edwards always seemed to give him. His eyes fell on Imogen and a smile played across his features.  _ Good _ , Imogen thought. He wasn’t so far into his stress spiral that he couldn’t be saved. 

Imogen decided to let the student council members torture Drew for a few minutes longer -- just long enough for her to grab two big hot plates of spaghetti and meatballs. Imogen always offered her meatballs to Drew, but she still asked the cafeteria lady for extra meatballs on Drew’s serving. If she could brighten Drew’s day in any dumb, small way, Imogen would always try. 

After receiving two steaming plates of spaghetti with extra meatballs, Imogen waltzed over to Drew’s table. “I need to steal Drew Torres for some  _ very serious _ business.” 

“Does that very serious business include eating a plate of spaghetti like Lady and the Tramp?” Drew immediately seemed less tense when his eyes fell on Imogen. “I request this meeting be adjourned. Did I use that word right?

“You surprisingly did.” Clare replied. She seemed hesitant to let Drew go but after a moment she shrugged. “Adjourned. I guess we can talk about budget stuff later.”

Drew stood up from the table and followed Imogen to wherever they could sit alone and talk. “How are you feeling, Immy?” Drew asked, his eyes glued to the two plates that Imogen was carefully setting on the table. He was  _ so  _ food motivated. “I’m starving.” He stated, as if it wasn’t obvious.

“I’ve been alright.” Imogen said. “I had class with Becky earlier and she’s still so eaten up with guilt..” She stabbed the meatballs on her plate and quickly transferred them onto Drew’s plate before sliding the loaded plate to right in front of him. 

Drew sighed as he began to wolf the plate down. “I don’t know how to fix it...” He said with a mouthful of meatballs. “I feel like I’m stuck…  _ consolidating _ everyone about it all the time.”

“Do you mean consoling?” Imogen questioned.

“Sure, I guess that’s the right word.” Drew replied with a mouthful of spaghetti. Something about the way Drew got words wrong sometimes just tickled Imogen. It was a habit some would categorize Drew as dumb for but honestly? Imogen thought it was  _ cute _ … Imogen had always been guilty of getting a million crushes a day, but her minor infatuation with Drew Torres definitely didn’t seem to want to flicker or fade, which seemed to be inconvenient to say the least. She was there to be a supportive friend --  _ that was all _ . The last thing Drew needed right now was Imogen getting all gushy and crushy. “I need a distraction big time. B has barely texted me in the past two weeks… She keeps making excuses to skip our nightly FaceTime calls. I’m worried she’s getting ready to leave me…College Bianca is just so  _ different _ . It feels like she’s growing up and growing out of me.

Imogen shook her head. “Not a chance. You guys are like soulmates. Bianca loves you like I love sushi.” She said. Imogen was actually incredibly surprised to hear that Drew and Bianca were having trouble. She figured after the Vegas wedding didn’t go as planned that they’d get married as soon as time allowed. 

“Ew, sushi?” Drew’s face curled into one of disgust. “B always wanted to try sushi...” He recalled. “Too bad I could never quite get over the scars left by a gas station sushi from many moons ago...” 

Imogen pulled an equally twisted-up face to mock Drew’s revulsion. “Wait, you don’t like sushi? You would totally  _ love  _ a spicy tuna roll.”

“Maybe we could try it out sometime? Like, after school today?” Drew proposed. “I wanna get my mind off Bianca. I can’t stop thinking about the fact that I may never get a chance to see her smile again. Her lips, those eyes…”

“You love Bianca, we get it!” Imogen teased, hoping to lighten the mood. 

“You used to be the same way with Fiona. I miss seeing your adorable public displays of affection in the hall.” Drew said. Imogen’s mind kicked into an immediate flash-back of all the good times she had with her ex-girlfriend. Stupid  _ Rome _ \-- why did the opportunity Fiona got have to be so awesome and worth exploring? Unable to resist doing or saying  _ something _ slightly dumb, Drew added, “And not just because I like watching girls make out."

“Ew!” Imogen recoiled and slapped Drew’s shoulder. “Don’t be icky!” 

“That’s what you signed up for if you wanna be my friend.” Drew laughed. “Adam always used to call me ‘ _ Drew the Dummy’ _ when we were little. He caught onto stuff faster than me despite the fact that I was older. He read all types of comics and graphic novels and was way better than me in like, every way. He always was, honestly.”

“You know that’s not true, right? You’re great at a lot of things.” Imogen encouraged her friend. “Adam was a great person, but so are you. You’re both awesome.”

“I just can’t help but feel like he should’ve lived. He would’ve had so much more of an impact on the world than I will…” Drew trailed off.

Imogen frowned. “Untrue. Do you need me to list off all the ways you’ve positively impacted my life? I haven’t quite sorted them into alphabetical order yet but I’m sure if you gave me an hour I could…”

Drew smiled, twirling a forkful of spaghetti around his fork before taking a gigantic bite. Imogen was glad she could at the very least make Drew crack a smile. “Sushi after school?” He asked, his voice slightly muffled due to the massive amounts of pasta that his mouth was being filled with. 

Imogen accepted the invitation without thinking twice. “I’m in, Drew Torres!” She reached over and high-fived him. She then felt her face get all warm and blushy… Imogen wanted to believe her excitement was because she was looking forward to being a good friend and support system for Drew. In all honesty though, part of her was already daydreaming about taking cute Hastygram pictures of Drew trying sushi for the first time. She had a particular vision of Drew sticking chopsticks under his top lip and pretending to be a walrus...

…

“Immy!” Becky met Imogen at the door of her last class, eagerly holding a stack of books with her yellow bag slung over her shoulder. “I was thinking we could hang at the library til’ your mom gets off work?” 

Imogen hadn’t intentionally double-booked. In any other circumstance she wouldn’t mind going to the library with Becky. Right now though, Imogen felt like Drew needed her. She was also  _ really _ craving sushi now. “Right, about that…” 

“You made other plans,” Becky picked up on the truth immediately. She wasn’t usually so perceptive. 

“Maybe?” Imogen adjusted her glasses nervously. “Do you _completely_ _hate_ me? You can still sleep over and everything. I just told Drew I could hang out for a few hours…” 

“Drew filled me in after our history quiz. He thought I already knew.”  _ Of course _ Drew and Becky had class together. “I can go to the library alone. Just meet me there after your  _ date _ .”

“It’s not…” Imogen paused, trying hard not to defend herself too hard or incriminate herself. “We’re just getting sushi.” 

Becky raised her eyebrows suggestively. “You sure about that? With the way you guys have been hanging out and talking about one another…”

“Hush. It’s nothing.” Imogen said, definitely partially trying to convince herself. “I’ll call you when I’m almost to the library. Enjoy your books!”

“Enjoy your sushi!” Becky mimicked Imogen’s tone a bit as she began to walk away. Imogen loved that she brought a more silly, whimsical side out of most of her friends. “See you later.”

…

“So, where do we start?” Drew looked over the gigantic assortment of sushi that Imogen had ordered. “ _ That one _ doesn’t look safe to eat.” He pointed to a piece of salmon that rested on a small ball of rice. 

“I promise, they’re all edible -- and  _ delicious _ .” Imogen broke apart her chopsticks and dug in. “This is a spicy tuna roll,” She picked up a piece and held it in front of Drew’s face. “It’s my favorite. I’m sure you’re gonna like it too.” 

Drew nervously began stirring his spoon in the miso soup that had been brought to the table earlier. “I dunno. I’m no good at trying new things anymore… I feel like I’ve lost my  _ spark _ . I think maybe it died with Adam.”

Imogen ate the piece of spicy tuna sushi that she had been dangling in Drew’s face. “Take your time. You thought you knew everything before Adam died, didn’t you?” 

“Pretty much,” Drew admitted. “I thought I had it all. Perfect family, perfect girl… Perfect job opportunities lining up after successfully running the Degrassi Day Camp…” 

“Did you get any opportunities from the Day Camp?” Imogen hadn’t realized that was part of his intent at all. 

Drew’s face fell. “Someone died, so…  _ no _ . I probably still could’ve gotten  _ something  _ out of it, but I was too busy mourning Adam to pursue anything.”

“It’s not too late. For  _ anything _ .” Imogen reassured. “There are so many things that you still have to learn about yourself, Drew Torres. Every time a door closes, another one opens.” She caught his eye with that statement, allowing a light blush to fill her cheeks. “You’ll find a job. You still have your family…” Imogen trailed off, hesitant to mention Bianca at this moment. It felt like she was having a  _ moment _ with Drew. “You’re  _ awesome _ . You don’t give yourself enough credit, Drew.”

Drew hesitantly picked up his chopsticks and split them in half just as he observed Imogen do just a moment earlier. “To new things?” He struggled to pick up a piece of spicy tuna sushi and held it up, attempting to elicit a  _ ‘cheers’.  _ The piece of sushi fell from his grip and landed in a puddle of soy sauce,  _ splashing _ into both of their faces. Drew and Imogen shared a laugh for a few minutes, finally breaking the bit of tension that existed between them. 

“Let’s talk about new things.” Imogen suggested, popping a piece of tuna sushi into her mouth. 

“How about some news that I heard earlier?” Drew offered, and Imogen nodded. “It’s about Degrassi’s old QB, Riley Stavros.” 

Imogen’s jaw dropped slightly. “Fions dated him before she was out of the closet! I heard he was a bit of a jerkface.”

“Not fully. He had a lot of crap going on at that time. Struggling with his sexuality…” Drew nervously twiddled with his chopsticks. “I heard today that he’s officially the first out and proud player on a  _ national _ team. Isn’t that crazy to think?”

“I’m proud of him. Coming out can be really difficult for some people. I can only imagine you sort of know what’s that like…” Imogen chewed on her bottom lip, trying to think of the best way to phrase what she was going to say next. 

Drew raised an eyebrow. “ _ Me _ ?” He seemed to tense up slightly. “Did someone... _ say something _ about me?” 

Imogen shook her head, shoving a too-big bite of salmon into her mouth before speaking. “I was talking about  _ Adam _ . Your brother.”

“Oh, I thought you meant…” Drew seemed like something was at the tip of his tongue. “Can I be honest with you?”

“Always.” Imogen said, her curiosity now piqued. 

Drew cleared his throat before speaking again. “I-um, had a crush on Riley…” He admitted. “He was the guy who made me realize I was bi.” 

Imogen was surprised. “I had no idea you were…” 

“Yeah, I don’t tell a lot of people. In fact, Adam was the only other person that knew. I never even told Bianca.”

“Why not?” Imogen dared to question. “Do you think she wouldn’t accept you?”

Drew shook his head. “I actually never bothered because when I was with her, I didn’t feel those feelings. She was my one and only. Now that things are fading between us, I’m having crushes again…” 

“There’s nothing wrong with crushes.” Imogen spoke from experience, though she wondered if that was actually true as her heart raced for Drew. 

“I love Bianca…” Drew started. “I just think both of our hearts and minds are in different places right now. She’s focused on college and new experiences, I’m stuck trying to heal from Adam and trying to find a new normal.” 

“And what’s that new normal?” Imogen’s eyes met Drew’s. 

Drew smiled, reaching down and grabbing a piece of sushi with his fingers. “Whatever it is, I’m doing it  _ my way _ . I guess you could say I’m a little inspired by you...” 

“Moi?” Imogen asked, placing her hands over her blushing cheeks. It had been such a long time since someone gave her butterflies like this. “I’ll take that. We’re gonna help you become the best version of yourself that you can be this year, Drew Torres.” 

“I just hope you’ll be along for the ride.” Drew flashed his pearly white teeth and Imogen beamed. 

“I can’t wait to see what our future holds.” Imogen shyly admitted. “I mean…  _ your _ future.” 

Drew stood up and switched to the other side of the booth, placing himself next to Imogen. “Our future.” He picked up another piece of sushi and popped it into his mouth. “Whatever it may hold.” 

“Whatever it takes.” Imogen placed a kiss on Drew’s cheek, then smiled. “Let’s finish this sushi pronto. I still have to pick Becky up from the library…” 

“Eating contest?” Drew offered.

Imogen grabbed a piece of spicy tuna sushi and nearly swallowed it whole. “You’re on, Torres.”


End file.
